Stop the train
by Staz
Summary: A Mark Greene and Susan Lewis fix-it-fic to the 3rd season episode "Union Station".


A/N: This is my first (and probably last) attempt at an ER fic, resulting from a too long period of studying medical facts and the need to just stare at the TV from time to time... having watched the first seasons of ER up to and including the 3rd season episode "Union Station", I just had to write this one. It's a Mark Greene/Susan Lewis fix-it-fic to the aforementioned episode. Comments are appreciated. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Spoilers: Up to and including the episode "Union Station".

All mistakes are mine.

Thoughts are written in italics

**Stop the train**

_That was a damn stupid move, Susan. Damn stupid._

She'd been on the train a whole of 15 minutes before her head started spinning. Having gotten on at the very last moment, it took her some time to get her bags tucked away, find her seat, take her coat off and settle down.

But now – now her brain went from automatic back to online and that nagging voice in her head started its engines.

_- How long have you waited and hoped for this thing between Mark and you to finally take form? And now that he told you he loves you, you're leaving?_

_- It's not my fault he waited till I got on the freaking train to have this epiphany!_

_- And yet you're the one who got on the train..._

_- I was already boarding!_

_- And you couldn't get off? What's the hurry? What's waiting for you in Phoenix? Chloe? She'll take advantage of your help and maybe even be grateful to you for it, but as she'd made painfully clear, she's living her own life now and she doesn't need you anymore. Little Suzie? _

_- I miss her like crazy. I can't wait to see her!_

_- But that little girl is not your little girl anymore, as hard as that may be to admit. You might get some hours each week with her, but between work and Chloe's own schedule and plans, it doesn't look like there'd be a whole lot of them... As for work, nothing was set in stone, and yet here you are, getting further and further away from what you want by the second. _

Susan stared out the window at the passing scenery. Everything was getting blurry.

_Stupid. Damn stupid._

-O-O-O-_  
_

Mark's mind was a blank.

Sitting on his living room couch, staring at the blank TV screen, he thought of nothing. He didn't think about Susan. Didn't think about the way he'd put his heart out there and she'd gone and broken it. He didn't think about her getting on that train. He didn't think about her telling him that she did love him. Nope, he didn't think about any of that.

Great. Now he was thinking about it.

Why had he waited till the last minute to tell her how he felt? He was fairly certain that had he confessed a week earlier, he would've convinced her to stay. After all, she did say she loved him. She did kiss him. Oh god, why'd she have to go and do that? Now he would fantasize about it, and think about the kisses they'll never share.

He loved that woman so much; his heart was filled with it. They were good together. They were right. And he'd let her go.

Wait.

Why'd he let her go?

Why didn't he follow her onto that train?

Or catch the next train to follow her down?

What was wrong with him?

He was already up and looking for his wallet. Where was it?

The phone rang.

He ignored it. He knew it wasn't Rachel, and everyone else could just wait. He didn't want to talk to anyone. He wanted to go see Susan. And where was his damned wallet?

He was pretty much taking the couch apart when the phone finally stopped ringing and redirected to the answering machine.

"Mark?" It was her.

"Susan?" He knocked his glasses off trying to get his head out of the cushions, and fumbled quickly to put them back on and look around his apartment. But she wasn't there. He frowned.

"Are you there?" Her voice again. The answering machine! He tripped over his own feet trying to get up and to the phone before she hung up. "I'm coming, Susan!"

"Damn... I was hoping you were home..." He was almost there. "Guess I'll try the hospital..."

"Susan!" He made it.

"Mark?"

"Susan. I'm here." Out of breath and cursing himself, but definitely there.

"Oh, Mark, thank god! Listen, I need your help."

"Sure, what is it? Are you okay?" His mind hadn't caught up yet.

"Yeah, yeah... it's just the train's having some sort of malfunction... they said it'll take hours. We're waiting in this godforsaken station in the middle of nowhere, Illinois..."

"Oh man, that's some serious bad luck." He couldn't help the glimmer of hope at hearing her travel wasn't a smooth one – maybe catching her before she was gone would be easier than he thought.

"Tell me about it." She sighed heavily and he could picture her restlessly running her hand through her hair.

"What can I do?"

"Well..." she started, "what're the odds of you getting in that big ass car of yours and coming to get me?"

"Sure!" Mark stuttered. His day was getting better by the minute. "Where'd you say you were?"

She told him the name of the station and where she'd be waiting, thanked him profusely and hung up.

Infused with newfound energy, a goofy, happy smile on his face, Mark set in search of his wallet once again, this time finding it almost immediately in the kitchen. He grabbed his keys and coat, haphazardly straightened out his beaten couch and was out the door.

The cold air hit him full in the face as he struggled to get his coat on, while not dropping the keys.

"Man, you're slow!"

His head shot sideways, his eyes focused. Impossible. "Susan?"

There, leaning against the passenger side door of his car, was the woman who moments ago asked him to come get her from the middle of nowhere.

"Hey. Miss me?" There was a huge grin on her face, that his lips seemed to want to copy without any intervention from his brain.

"But you said…" He was having a hard time catching up.

"I lied." She shrugged, still smiling that big wide smile of hers.

Mark walked over to stand in front of her and raised his brows in askance. She shrugged again. "I did get off the train in the middle of nowhere. Voluntarily. And then I took a cab."

"And you called to ask for a ride because...?" He got the words out around his smile.

"Just wanted to mess with you." The twinkle in her eye was mesmerizing. He hadn't seen it in a while. Hadn't realized how much he'd missed it. Missed her. They'd grown slightly apart in recent weeks. He wanted to kiss the smile right off her face, but first he had to ask.

"Susan, why... how..." If he could only get the question out... Thankfully, she seemed to understand. After all, who understands you better than your best friend, right?

"I just... realized that I really wasn't in any hurry to get to Phoenix... and I rather wanted to talk to you." Her smile lessened as she spoke, opening her eyes and her heart to him. Then her smile widened again and he was pretty sure his heart gave a premature atrial contraction. "Besides, I figured I really should finish what I started."

He played along. "Oh really? What's that?"

"This..." Her fingers once again found their way to curl around his neck, as she pulled his mouth down to hers. Their lips met slowly, they took their time. Neither was in a hurry this time and this was a kiss to be savored.

The kiss deepened as Susan brought her other hand up and around his shoulder and Mark gathered her close in his arms, drinking her in and taking the opportunity to run his hand along her back, bury it in her hair and angle her head so their lips melded perfectly to each other.

They broke apart, grins momentarily at bay, due to awe, and just stared at each other for a moment. "I'm really glad you came back." Mark finally breathed.

"Me too." But all this talking wasn't really to her liking. Oh, they'd talk. They had plenty of talking to do, but right now, she just wanted to kiss him some more. She wanted to revel in his warm embrace and this feeling of homecoming blossoming inside her and keeping her warm and blissfully unaware of the chilly Chicago weather just outside the Mark and Susan cocoon.

So she leaned back into him and was pleased at his complete and total cooperation.

-O-O-O-

Carol was walking briskly, trying to out-walk the chilly winds that were freezing every bit of exposed skin. She had to talk to Mark. The guy had been damn near impossible that day, and if it wasn't for the fact that she knew the reason behind the behavior and the fact that she cared deeply for him, he'd be in pieces by now.

When he failed to return to his shift after his break and didn't answer his phone, she had to check he was okay. Doug told her he'd gone after Susan, and that made her worry even more.

She'd tried Susan's place, betting he'd be there sitting in the middle of an empty room, but found nothing. So now she was going to his place, just rounding the corner of his street. She'd just make sure he was okay, shake him and drag him back to the ER with her. If there was one good thing about the ER it was that it kept your mind off of your personal business. She should know.

Finally turning the corner, her breath coming out in white puffs ahead of her, she stopped dead in her tracks. Her eyes widened and she had to clamp a hand over her mouth to keep in the happy squeal that wanted out.

In front of Mark's building, oblivious to the entire outside world, the ER's most popular non-couple were kissing as if this was some Hollywood movie goodbye scene. She wanted to jump for joy. She wanted to tell Doug. She wanted to run over and hug her two clueless friends and yell "Finally!" in their faces.

She turned around and quickly walked away, keeping her hand firmly against her grinning mouth. She'd have to settle for telling Doug. Finally – she had some new gossip!

-O-O-O-

There. All fixed. :-)

Let me know what you think.


End file.
